Steam for Linux open beta begins this week

Steam’s limited Linux beta has been running for a little over a month now, recently opening up to 5,000 new testers. Today, in a message to the Steam for Linux closed mailing list, Valve has announced that it will be opening up the beta to the public next week.

Opening up the beta would increase the current population of 80,000 testers to, Valve hopes, a much larger number. Along with the open beta, Valve will release a new web page detailing how to install Ubuntu and Steam for Linux. A Steam for Linux repository will also be set up, stats for the Linux games library will be released, and of course, games that support Linux will become available for purchase.

Remember, just because Steam is making its way to Linux doesn’t mean it’ll bring a boatload of games — Steam is just a client, not some kind of automatic porting engine. However, if the client proves to be a success, game developers could take interest in making a Linux version of their game in order to make some extra money. That said, the client is expected to have around 40 games available at launch, including World of Goo, Amnesia, and Sword & Sworcery.

Valve will be opening up the beta around Christmas time — a thoughtful present to all those bored Linux gamers, but also the perfect time to generate a large amount of sales.